


Apocalypse

by redowl2432



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Apocalypse, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Ensemble Cast, Friendship, Horror, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Survival Horror, Teamwork, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:34:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25197784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redowl2432/pseuds/redowl2432
Summary: Sixteen special teenagers are faced with the disappearance of everyone else, a wall surrounding their entire city, and no way to contact the outside world. They must put aside their differences and work together in order to find out the truth behind this "apocalypse" and the strange monsters that pursue them.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Saihara Shuichi, Amami Rantaro/Oma Kokichi, Chabashira Tenko/Yumeno Himiko, Harukawa Maki/Momota Kaito, Oma Kokichi/Saihara Shuichi (One-Sided)
Kudos: 23





	1. The End

Chapter 1: The End

Shuichi Saihara liked to consider himself a little above average in terms of intelligence. He knew he wasn’t special by any means, but when compared to his fellow classmates, he performed better on tests. Also, he was one of the better puzzle solvers he knew… besides his uncle, who was the smartest man he knew as the top detective in Hope City. It was this intelligence that allowed him to become a detective-in-training at only ten years old. He didn’t like to consider himself a real detective, though. Regardless, it was the fact that he was so smart that made this situation all the more confusing to him. He had no logical explanation for this. Nothing could explain why everyone in his criminology class had suddenly disappeared.  
Shuichi sat silently for a few minutes before coming to the realization of what just happened. His yellow eyes scanned the room, noticing traces of the life that was there only moments before. He didn’t feel as shocked as he should have been. Instead, he felt strangely calm. He slowly stood up from his desk and looked around again, just in case this was all some illusion. After no one showed up, he started pacing the classroom. Whether it was himself panicking or simply an instinctual need to investigate, he couldn’t be sure, but he was picking up on small details. Like the notebooks open to half-scrawled notes on pages with similar looking graphs and statistics. Or the pencils that were left rolling around on the ground after they’d dropped from the hands of their users.  
The silence was suffocating. It was piercing through his ears, going straight to his brain and leaving only a sharp ringing. He swallowed his fear and burst out into the school’s hallway. It was in a similar state of abandon as the classroom. No one could be seen or heard. Even though he knew the answer, he checked all of the other classrooms one by one. The growing dread in his stomach grew with each lifeless room he came to. After what seemed like hours of exploring his school, which now felt more unfriendly and unfamiliar than it ever had before, he came to the conclusion that there was no one there besides him.  
He was unsure of what to do. He felt he had a freedom he didn’t want. He was used to following a pretty strict schedule everyday. Wake up and get ready, go to school, work at his uncle’s detective agency, go home and work on homework, then go to sleep and repeat the next day. In all his planning, the incident of everyone disappearing from his school never seemed like a possibility. Even if there was someone else here now, someone more confident and assertive than himself, he would have someone to follow, which he preferred. He didn’t like having to make decisions for himself. And yet, that seemed like the only option now.  
So, with dread lingering on his heart and mind, he pushed open the double doors to the outside world and stepped into the cool morning air. It was a partially sunny day, with light gray clouds passing over the sun every couple of seconds. A breeze came from the nearby beach to the north, creating a comfortable temperature. The sounds of birds chirping and tree branches rustling in the wind were a welcome addition to the tense atmosphere.  
Shuichi let his feet carry him down the road from his school, which went through a short field before leading into the city. Skyscrapers rose suddenly on either side, a harsh contrast to the grassy plains mere feet away. Cars were stopped at random positions on the roads. No human beings in sight. As Shuichi came upon a four-way intersection, he realized the gravity of the situation. Cars were rammed into the sides of nearby buildings and metal poles. It seemed that this disappearance didn’t just affect his school, it affected the entire city… maybe even more. Shuichi shook his head to clear it of such frightening thoughts and continued on his way.  
He decided that without any clear objective in mind, and no knowledge of what could lay around any corner, he should head to his uncle’s workplace. Maybe his uncle would be there, and he would definitely have an explanation for this. Together, they could solve whatever crazy thing was happening here.  
Before Shuichi could walk another block, a force suddenly crashed into his back and he let out a short scream before his face was forced down onto the cracked concrete of the sidewalk. He tried to stand again but couldn’t due to the weight keeping him pinned down. He struggled, attempting to move his limbs so he could push himself up, but whoever or whatever was on him wouldn’t let up easily.  
“Stop struggling,” A cold voice said. Shuichi gasped and stopped, just like he was ordered to. The sound of another voice was like music to his ears, even if its owner had complete control over him at the moment. “Who are you and where are you from?”  
Shuichi winced as he turned his head so he could more easily speak in his awkward position. “Who are you?” His detective instincts speaking, even if his common sense told him to answer his attacker’s questions.  
“I’m asking the questions.” At that point, Shuichi realized a higher pitch to the emotionless voice. So it was a girl. An extremely strong, and frankly, intimidating, girl. He tried to place the voice to a face, maybe it would be someone he knew. The girl was definitely younger, under twenty probably, but he knew looks and voices could be deceiving. She seemed to be growing angrier too, losing her patience.  
“Hey. Answer my question, or I’ll make you answer.” Shuichi felt pain explode in his right shoulder as the girl twisted his arm behind him.  
“Alright, alright. Shuichi Saihara. I’m from Spring Field Academy, just a few blocks behind us,” Shuichi said, feeling the pain on his cheek grow with every word he said. It was definitely scraped.  
There was a short pause before the girl spoke again after releasing his arm. “Saihara, huh? You must be the so-called junior detective. I’d expect you to have an explanation for this, then.” Shuichi felt the girl’s knee dig harder into his back.  
“N-no, honestly, I don’t. I have no idea what’s going on, sorry. I’m really not all that great of a detective… But if you let me up, I’ll lead you to the police station and we can see if anyone there knows what’s going on,” Shuichi said, hoping the girl would agree.  
There was another pause before the weight was lifted from his back and he let out a deep sigh. He shakily stood up and hoped the soreness in his back wouldn’t last long. He turned around slowly as to not startle the violence-prone girl even more. It was obvious she was suspicious of him. He supposed he should be suspicious of her too, but he felt more relieved than anything to have another person by his side right now.  
He was shocked at how average the girl looked. She was shorter than him and skinny, with two long pigtails of soft-looking brown hair. Her blood-colored eyes were trained on him, not averting for even a single second. She wore a dark red and black school uniform. So she was in high school, like him. That made him feel even better about being acquainted with her.  
“Don’t try anything funny,” The girl said. “We’re going straight to the police station with no stops or shortcuts or anything. Do you understand?” Her eyes were staring into his soul.  
“Yes… I understand,” Shuichi replied meekly. He wasn’t about to disobey someone who could probably take him out with one hit. So, with the powerful girl by his side, Shuichi started on his walk to the police station again.  
Before long, the sound of their footsteps was the only thing Shuichi could hear. It was a repeating pattern of his black loafers and then the girl’s light-colored boots. His mind focused on the differences of the sounds they were making. He felt like he was losing his mind. Not to mention the gaze he could still feel on his back. He had to speak to break the tension.  
“So… you have no idea what’s going on either?”  
“No.”  
“Um… I mean, since we’re walking together, what’s your name?”  
“That’s none of your business.”  
Shuichi was silenced by the girl’s rudeness. But he still felt he deserved to know her name, if nothing else. “Can you please tell me?”  
“I can’t.”  
“Why not?”  
“Fine! If you must know, Maki Harukawa.”  
Shuichi was sure he’d never met her now. Still, something about the name seemed oddly familiar. Like a memory he’d had but was now shoved to some dark corner of his mind. He turned to look at her, only to quickly face forward again at the sight of her piercing red eyes.  
“What school are-” Shuichi started.  
Shut up.”  
“Why are you-”  
“No, seriously, be quiet. What’s that noise?”  
They were only two blocks away from the police station. A car was crashed into the building ahead of them, the windshield shattered into a million pieces and the bumper crushed beyond repair. Just beyond the car was a small alleyway. And from somewhere in that alleyway was a strange whimpering noise. It sounded like an injured animal.  
“Stay here,” Maki mouthed to Shuichi as she crept forward to the side of the car. She crouched down, careful to not let her bare knees touch the glass shards as she crawled to peer around the back. It was amazing how she could creep through the glass and not let a single audible footstep ring out through the near-silence. Maki was completely still as her eyes focused on something Shuichi couldn’t see from his angle. Then, she suddenly leapt forward into the alleyway, which was followed by a scream.  
Shuichi ran around the car to help Maki, assuming she was the one who let out the scream. However, he assumed wrong, as he noticed the trembling figure Maki was dragging out onto the sidewalk. It was another girl. She looked like a middle schooler, being under five feet with a weak-looking frame. A floppy witch hat covered red hair, cut above her shoulders. Her clothes were just as odd and looked like they’d come out of someone’s grandma’s closet. A brown vest and black jacket over a buttoned white shirt and a puffy red skirt over black leggings with large cream-colored boots to complete the look. When the girl opened her brown eyes, Shuichi noticed their watery look and the puffiness of her red, tear-streaked cheeks. Her face gave off a pouting look that a small child would make when they were upset over not getting something they wanted.  
“Who are you?” Maki demanded in just as cold of a voice she used with Shuichi. He realized she didn’t hold back no matter who it was. She was harsh.  
“Maki, wait… She’s just a kid,” Shuichi held his hands out comfortingly towards the young girl as Maki shot him a cruel glare.  
“That doesn’t matter! Don’t you understand what’s going on here? Or are you just stupid?” Maki hissed back, tightening her grip on the girl’s jacket. The girl let out a whimper.  
“I…” The girl started as she wiped the back of her hand against her eyes and nose. “I’m Himiko Yumeno… and I’m a high schooler, not a little kid.” Shuichi gasped quietly as Himiko looked at him. There was no way that tiny girl was almost the same age as him. “Also, I’m a mage!” Shuichi’s eyes widened. She was out of her mind.  
“Alright, whatever,” Maki scoffed as she released Himiko. She stumbled now that she was free and brushed off her leggings.  
“Why did you grab me like that? You could’ve asked me to just come out,” Himiko mumbled, adjusting her witch hat. Shuichi couldn’t take his eyes off her weird wardrobe choices.  
“Just in case. Why were you crying?” Maki asked, giving Himiko the same piercing look she gave to Shuichi.  
“Well… I was walking home from the gas station, since I had today off of school and I needed some more candy for one of my spells,” Himiko started as she gestured to a small plastic bag in the alleyway, which Shuichi could see contained colorful bags of sweets. “And then, all of a sudden, this car crashed right in front of me. I guess the ghost driving must have been a bad driver…”  
“The ghost?” Shuichi asked.  
“Nyeh, well, there was nobody driving,” Himiko pointed out.  
“It’s not a ghost,” Maki said as she rolled her eyes. “Everyone just disappeared.”  
“Since the car almost hit me, I had to run in there to escape it. That was really scary, but then I saw a monster. It was super tall and it had six arms and eight legs and was sniffing around. I think it was looking for magic, so I ran further back and hid behind a trash can. It smelled really bad, but it didn’t notice me so that’s okay,” Himiko continued. Her voice quivered at the mention of the monster.  
“A monster…” Shuichi muttered to himself. He could barely believe the situation. First, everyone disappears, then monsters appear? How much weirder could this day get? Shuichi hoped this was all a dream, but something within him told him that wasn’t the case.  
“There’s no such things as monsters,” Maki said. “You were hallucinating. Now go on home and eat your candy or whatever.” With that, Maki spun on her heels and resumed walking in the same direction they were before. “Come on, Shuichi,” She said impatiently over her shoulder.  
Shuichi took a step before looking back at Himiko again. A tear rolled down her round cheek. “But didn’t everyone disappear? I don’t wanna be alone with the monsters outside. What if the monster’s waiting outside my house because it knows I’m tastier since I use magic?” Himiko turned to Shuichi with the wide, frightened eyes of a child. It would be wrong to leave her.  
“Maki, wait!” Shuichi shouted to the girl getting further away. “Himiko, do you want to come with us? You’ll be safe with us… I mean, her. I wouldn’t want you to see that monster again.” Shuichi thought of himself as a skeptical person. You had to be as a detective. People are innocent until proven guilty, even if they are accused of being guilty. So, he would have liked to doubt a “monster sighting”. But when ninety nine percent of the city’s population disappeared for no reason, it was hard to doubt many things. So he forced himself to take Himiko as a truthful person.  
“Can I really?” Himiko asked, looking between him and Maki.  
“Of course.” Shuichi smiled. The first smile he’d had ever since this craziness started. Himiko’s eyes sparked with a new hope and she excitedly grabbed her bag of candy before running after Maki.  
“Shuichi!” Maki shouted angrily as he approached the girls.  
“We can’t just leave her,” Shuichi said, holding back his fear of the strong girl’s anger. Thankfully, she didn’t pursue it, simply growling something under her breath and stalking behind Shuichi. Himiko skipped along beside her, swinging her plastic bag. Shuichi kept walking, determined on reaching the police station before anything else could happen.


	2. What's Going On?

The three teenagers stood in front of the police station, waiting for someone to act. Shuichi was in front, his hand hovering over the metal door handles leading inside. To his left, the front window that previously displayed the gold logo of the Hope City Police Force was shattered into a million pieces by a pickup truck. Shuichi could see his nervous-looking reflection in the still-intact glass on the doors. He wasn’t sure what he was scared of, exactly. His hopes were already crushed by the comatose-looking building.  
After a little more hesitation, and a sharp glare from Maki, Shuichi pulled open the doors and stepped into the lobby of the police station. The overhead fan was still on from whoever inhabited the room last, rustling various stacks of paper on the front desk. More pieces of glass glittered on the dark blue carpet, worn down from many visitors and workers over the years, and stained with spilled coffee. The chairs in front of the window were disrupted by the bumper of the pickup truck jutting through the hole where glass once was. Shuichi was suddenly thankful for years of training from his uncle, otherwise, he would have no idea where to go next. With a faint determination, he set off down the dark hallway behind the front desk.  
After turning a corner into another hallway only illuminated by a window with the blinds drawn, the third office on the right was his uncle’s. The smell of freshly-brewed coffee and smoke was familiar to Shuichi as he stepped inside the dim room. In the center of the softer and less-stained brown carpet was the regal-looking oak desk he remembered fondly from his childhood. It was the place where his uncle did all of his work, and the place where Shuichi’s child self dreamed to sit one day. Now he realized the work of a detective was more dark than what it seemed to a ten year old.  
Behind the desk were rows of file cabinets, filled with countless numbers of case files, ranging from theft to murder. And in one corner near the bottom, insignificant among the other drawers, was one marked with the letters “S.S.”. Shuichi pulled it open. It was his drawer, after all. The papers inside, although measly when compared to the others, had been a major part of Shuichi’s life, and took up much of his free time over the past seven years. He quickly flipped through their yellowing edges and recalled memories that were buried deep in his mind. His first case, his most dangerous case, his easiest case, his latest case…  
“What are you doing?” Maki’s emotionless voice surprised Shuichi, causing him to jump up and slam the drawer shut. She was standing in the doorway, blocking what little light came in from the hallway. Although her eyes were shaded, Shuichi could still detect the same hostility she showed earlier. The same hostility he’d been forced to face in the eyes of those he arrested… Shuichi averted his eyes, finding something to stare at on his uncle’s desk.  
“Sorry, I just wanted to see if anyone was here,” Shuichi said, nervously scratching his neck.  
“Well, obviously no one is going to be inside a drawer,” Maki scoffed. “We don’t have time to waste. We need to find other people and interrogate them until we know exactly what’s going on here.”  
Shuichi sighed. He didn’t think anyone would know what was happening no matter what, even if they were the smartest person alive. Anyways, none of them knew if anyone else was even here. They didn’t know if anyone else was even alive. Shuichi unwittingly shivered, despite the warmth of the office.  
“So let’s leave. Nothing’s going to happen by just standing around here,” Maki said before turning and walking back down the hallway. Shuichi listened to her footsteps get more muffled before he realized something. Even if there was no one here, there were still tools he could use. Well, at least attempt to, since he was afraid of it.  
He pulled open the biggest drawer on the wooden desk, revealing the clutter inside. A pile of unimportant papers and pens covered the object Shuichi was searching for: a safe. He tossed the papers onto the floor, silently apologizing to his uncle, but hoping he would understand if he knew their situation. The black and white keypad was soon exposed, and Shuichi paused. He knew his uncle told him the password. He always told him it was okay to open it in case of emergencies. His uncle probably figured an emergency would be an out-of-control criminal or an intense hunt, not whatever this was. But it was definitely an emergency, no matter how you looked at it.  
The password was something passed down by generations of detectives, his uncle told him. From what Shuichi could remember, it was created by his great-great-uncle or something at a crime scene. It was a number written by the culprit in her own blood when she was murdered by another killer… It was a complicated case, and a very famous one. 11037! That was it! Shuichi hastily pressed the numbers, twisted the handle, and the safe popped open with a satisfying click.  
Shuichi’s heart skipped a beat when he saw what was inside. His uncle’s favorite weapon, which he used in the many infamous fights between him and his spiteful enemies. He gently picked it up with sweaty hands. He’d never held it before, but knew how powerful it was. There wasn’t a single person who survived against it in all of his uncle’s years working. Shuichi felt like he didn’t even deserve to hold it. He was nowhere near as capable as his uncle. He barely had any experience shooting, either.  
“What the hell are you doing now?” Maki demanded, back in the doorway. This time, she looked even angrier. Shuichi muttered apologies as he grabbed its holster from the safe, closed the drawer, and carefully attached the gun to his belt. “What do you have there?” Maki asked, approaching Shuichi and staring at his new weapon with a curious look.  
“Ah, it’s nothing… just in case we need to protect ourselves, I guess…” Shuichi said. He took a step back when Maki reached a slender hand out to touch the gun. At the movement, she glared at him again.  
“Let me see it,” Maki said.  
“What? Why?” Shuichi asked.  
Maki sighed and placed a hand to her forehead. “Are you actually going to use it?”  
Shuichi paused. “M-maybe.” He was still unsure of himself, but he definitely didn’t trust the dangerous girl with this gun.  
“Well then give it to me. I know how to use it.”  
“How do you know how to use a gun?” Shuichi half-shouted in his shock. The only people permitted to carry guns in Hope City were police officers, and he was sure none of the officers had the name “Harukawa” or even looked remotely like the girl in front of him.  
“That’s none of your business, okay? Just give me the gun.” Maki made another lunge towards Shuichi, but he quickly stepped back again, tripping into the file cabinet and grunting in pain. His back would never recover after today.  
“It’s my gun. There are more in the room down the hall!” Shuichi shouted as he and Maki continued dancing around the room.  
“Guys!”  
“I don’t care. Why should you get the best one? I want it!” Maki was almost able to grab it that time. Shuichi tripped over his own feet, stumbling to the ground.  
“Shuichi! Maki!”  
“It’s my uncle’s! You wouldn’t have even been able to get it without me!”  
“Oh really?” Maki kneeled in front of Shuichi, her eyes those of a hunter whose prey was below it, about to die. Shuichi tried to cower further into the carpet.  
“Stop it!” Himiko screamed, suddenly in the doorway. Maki turned to face her, and Shuichi took the opportunity to scramble to his feet and put the desk between him and his attacker, breathing heavily the whole time.  
“What do you want now? I thought I told you to wait out there,” Maki asked, rising to her feet as well.  
“Well, I was sitting there, but then… I saw the monster again! He’s outside!” Himiko quieted her voice with every word. Shuichi stopped breathing. That couldn’t be possible, right? He looked to Maki, but she only stared at Himiko with an uninterested look.  
“You really expect me to believe that?” Maki asked, pacing towards Himiko. “What are you trying to pull? It’s not funny.” She backed Himiko against the wall in the hallway, staring her down.  
“No, I swear I’m not lying!” Himiko insisted. “Come and see!” She pointed down the hallway.  
“I’m not falling for your tricks.”  
“Maybe we should just go see,” Shuichi stepped between the two, avoiding eye contact with Maki as much as possible. “I mean, I’ve got the gun if it’s a trap and anyone tries to attack…” He waited for Maki’s verbal beating again.  
To his surprise, she simply sighed and backed away. “Fine. Whatever. But if you trick me, Himiko, I will kill you.” Maki turned and stalked down the hallway, back towards the lobby.  
Himiko swallowed audibly and trembled. Shuichi looked down at her, feeling sympathy for the tiny girl. After all, he knew what it was like to be prey to Maki. It could only be worse when you were half a foot shorter. “It’s okay, Himiko,” Shuichi tried reassuring her. “She didn’t mean it. I’ll protect you, don’t worry.” He nearly blushed at the sound of his own voice. He wasn’t used to comforting others, and it made him feel awkward when he did it.  
“It’s fine, I’m not scared of her. I’ll just use my magic to hold her back if she tries attacking me,” Himiko said. “But the monster… I tried casting some powerful spells on it before and nothing could defeat it. Thankfully, my protection spell worked. It couldn’t even get close… But my MP is too low to cast it again right now…” Himiko seemed strangely proud when talking about her magic.  
“Ah… right,” Shuichi said. If nothing else, he could humor her for a while. Together, the two followed Maki’s path to the lobby.  
In the lobby, Maki stood near the window, hiding her body from the outside using the truck. She peered over the hood, scanning the street outside with an experienced gaze. After a second, she backed away and approached the two, giving Himiko a critical look.  
“There’s nothing out there,” Maki said. “You’re lucky I don’t hurt you right now, Himiko. I’m tired of hearing your lies.”  
Himiko looked like Maki slapped her across the face. “But… it was just there a few minutes ago! And I didn’t cast any spells to hide it or anything!”  
“Enough with the magic stuff!” Maki yelled, causing Himiko to flinch back. Maki took a threatening step forward, but her foot hit something soft. It was the bag of opened candy. Maki scowled at the inanimate object before picking it up and throwing it at Himiko. It hit the small girl’s chest, then fell back to the ground. Neon pieces of gummy candy scattered on the otherwise dull carpet, much to Himiko’s dismay. “Maybe it’s sugar that’s making you see hallucinations.”  
“Holy shit.” Shuichi said the words before he could realize what he said. Maki narrowed her eyes at him, having forgotten he was there. He was staring straight ahead, out the window-turned-hole. His yellow eyes sparked with something Maki noticed right away: fear.  
Maki whipped around to see what he saw. Outside on the street, only about twenty or thirty meters away, was the strangest-looking creature she’d ever seen. From this distance, she couldn’t make out the details, but it looked robotic and animalistic at the same time. It had no head, but had two large arms and two short legs, which it stood on. It also had a long tail. So the six arms and eight legs Himiko claimed it to have were a lie, but everything else seemed to be true. It was scanning the ground, following the path on the sidewalk they took to reach the station, and it was getting closer with every second.  
“What the-” was the only thing Maki could get out before her arm was roughly grabbed and she was pulled behind the large front desk. Only when they were all on the ground, cowering under the desk, did Shuichi let go of her. He was sweating now, and shivering. His eyes had a haunted look to them. And Himiko didn’t look any better. She was curled up, her back resting against the desk, and her short arms were wrapped around her legs, pulled tightly against her chest.  
“That’s the monster… I told you…” Himiko slowly moved her fearful eyes to Maki. “I’m out of MP. I don’t know what to do.”  
“Shit…” Shuichi muttered again. “What do we do?” He asked, and Maki could only assume he was talking to her.  
“How am I supposed to know?” Maki whispered back. “I don’t even know what that thing is!”  
“It kinda looks like a robot…” Shuichi whispered. Maki noticed how he was gripping his dark jacket, pulling it up slightly, exposing the similarly-colored holster.  
“The gun. If you give it to me, I can try shooting it.”  
“Are you crazy?” Shuichi flicked his eyes to her. They were burning with fear and confusion. “It’s all metal! I don’t know if the bullets in this gun can even shoot through that! And if it doesn’t work, then that thing will probably get mad!”  
“Listen, I can kill it! You have no idea who I am-” Maki stopped herself. She couldn’t tell them her job. Especially the detective boy. He wouldn’t like it at all. He’d probably forget all about their situation and lock her in a cell on the spot.  
“Well who are you, then?” Shuichi asked.  
Before Maki could respond, the sound of crushing metal caught all of their attention. Being the closest to the end of the desk, Maki cautiously peeked her head around the corner. The robot was attempting to crawl over the crashed pickup truck into the building. It was obviously a hard task for such a big creature, since its various body parts kept getting stuck on the window frame. Maki let out a quiet breath before moving back under the desk.  
“It’s crawling inside,” she announced calmly, despite feeling her heart beating. She hadn’t felt like this in forever. It frightened her, but made her feel exhilarated at the same time.  
“What?” Shuichi whispered. Himiko let out a cry muffled by her hands, now pressed against her mouth. “What do we do?”  
A loud crash followed Shuichi’s words. Maki peeked around the corner again. The robot was now inside, facing the hole it crawled through. If she had to guess its height, the thing was probably about ten feet tall, since it had to crouch just to fit in the room. Maki looked around for anything to use to escape. Then, it hit her. The bag of candy, still lying where she had thrown it only minutes before. With one swift movement, Maki grabbed the bag and retreated back under the desk.  
“What’s that for?” Shuichi asked.  
“We’re going to run,” Maki said. Steeling her nerves, she silently rose just enough to look over the edge of the desk. She ignored Shuichi’s quiet pleas for her to sit back down and Himiko’s muffled cries. The robot was inspecting the door, specifically, the door handle. Could it see fingerprints? Maki hoped not. She took a deep breath, knowing she had to act now or never. Then, with all her strength, she threw the bag of candy out the broken window, praying that her plan would work.  
She could hear the bag land with a crackle in the glass outside. The robot immediately snapped its head up and hesitated for only a heartbeat before it charged back out the hole it crawled in through. Maki thanked her plan for not betraying her before grabbing Shuichi’s wrist and dragging him up. He gasped quietly before quickly turning and grabbing Himiko, half-pulling, half-carrying her.  
Maki started running, dragging the two slower teenagers behind her. “Is there a back entrance?” She asked Shuichi as they continued down the hallway.  
“Uh… yeah… just… turn left at the end here,” Shuichi gasped through breaths. Maki nodded and did what he told her to. At the end of the hall, she could see light seeping through a small window above a door. They burst out into the morning air, but they didn’t stop running until they were a block away from the station, in the opposite direction they came from.  
The three stood on the sidewalk, hands on their knees, breathing like they just ran a marathon. “So… what really is going on here?” Maki asked the question no one knew the answer to. Shuichi and Himiko didn’t even bother looking at her. “Nevermind… I guess that doesn’t matter anymore… Let’s just keep going.”


	3. Survival

Shuichi wasn’t an expert at survival by any means. He never bothered to watch the survival tip videos he would see online every once in a while, figuring they’d never apply to him. After all, he lived in one of the most technologically advanced cities in the world, and his plans for the future included getting a stable job as a detective and maybe even settling down to have a family eventually. He wondered if any of those plans were realistic now that this happened.  
Despite his lack of knowledge in terms of survival, he knew a few things. Humans could survive three weeks without food and three days without water. It had been about half a day since everyone disappeared, so he wasn’t worried about food yet. Water was a bigger problem right now. Then again, it wasn’t like they had to hunt for anything. Grocery stores, houses, and gas stations were still stocked.  
The problem was other people. If anyone else was still here, they would have the same idea, and it was likely they could encounter them at those places. How long would it be before the city ran out of food? Also, those robot creatures. Did they have enough intelligence to patrol the areas people would gather? Or would they wander aimlessly until they found someone?  
“Shuichi!” Maki yelled. Shuichi was brought back to the real world from his thoughts. He and his new friends were still just walking with no goal in sight, only an endless stretch of gray concrete ahead of them, bordered on either side by oppressive skyscrapers. Over the course of the day, more clouds blocked out the sun, turning the city streets into a gloomy wasteland of what they once were. A cold wind had started about fifteen minutes before, and Shuichi wished he was wearing something warmer now.   
“What?” Shuichi responded.  
“Weren’t you listening at all?” Maki growled.  
Shuichi paused. Maki was talking? “Sorry…” he said meekly. Himiko looked at him with a sympathetic look.  
He heard her mutter something about “useless” under her breath. He ignored it, now used to the constant insults from her. “I was saying that we should have a plan. Otherwise, we might as well just give up now and wait for our deaths.”  
“Yeah, you’re right,” Shuichi said. “I was thinking the same thing.”  
“I think we should plan on staying in the city for one or two more weeks to see if anyone else is here. Then we can question them. Someone’s bound to have an idea of what’s going on. After that, we should go to another city. Maybe things won’t be so screwed up there. At least, we’ll have to hope that’s the case.”  
“Yeah…Sounds good to me,” Shuichi said. Part of him wanted to escape the city immediately. It was obvious nothing good would happen by them staying here. Honestly, he didn’t even care about figuring out what was going on. He just wanted a normal life back.  
“What about the monsters?” Himiko asked. “They probably have a whole army after us now!” Her expression grew panicked at the thought.   
While Maki previously would have rolled her eyes at the girl and called her a liar, she had seen the “monsters” with her own two eyes, so denying them wasn’t a possibility anymore. What made it worse was that she didn’t know how they worked. Humans were easy to figure out and predict, but robots were a whole different situation. Until she figured out how they were programmed or how they were being controlled, she didn’t want to get involved with them.  
“How about we stay at someone’s house, then? It’ll be familiar to one of us, and I’m sure we all know hiding places at our own houses in case we need them,” Shuichi suggested. Neither of the girls had any complaints. “Okay, does anyone volunteer?”  
“Not mine,” Maki said. Shuichi raised an eyebrow at her and she glared back, causing the boy to avert his eyes. She wasn’t happy about having to stay at someone else’s house, especially someone she’d only met hours before, but it was better than having two suspicious teenagers at her apartment, where they could easily uncover her secret.   
“I don’t wanna go to my house,” Himiko said. “The monster was by it and it’s probably waiting outside for us to come back.” Shuichi couldn’t argue with that. There was nothing to prove the robot knew where she lived, but it was probably better to not take risks right now.  
“Alright then, I guess we’re staying at mine,” Shuichi said. His house, well, his uncle’s house, was decently sized. It had three bedrooms and three bathrooms, as well as a backyard that went right against the forest bordering the city. But there was one problem… “We’re going in the wrong direction, though.”  
“What?” Maki hissed.  
“We have to go back the other way.”  
From the look Maki was giving him, she was probably imagining strangling him. He wanted to say that he didn’t choose to travel this way, it was Maki who led them after their escape, but he held his tongue.   
“How far is it?” Maki asked coldly.  
“Um… probably around forty five minutes to walk from here…” Shuichi guessed after looking around at their surroundings. Years spent working in the police station made him well acquainted with the various streets of Hope City. “Yeah. If we walk fast, it could be less, though.”  
“Well, we don’t have time to waste. Let’s go,” Maki said as she started briskly walking back the way they came. Shuichi turned to follow her, but a small hand grabbed his sleeve and pulled him back.  
“Wait!” Himiko shouted at Maki, who stopped in her tracks and turned around. “Shuichi, do you have food at your house?” Himiko asked.  
“Of course I do.”  
“Well…” Himiko was interrupted by a loud growl from her stomach. “I’m really hungry. I lost my candy I was gonna eat, so…” Himiko attempted a dirty look at Maki, who seemed not to notice or care. “Can we stop somewhere to get snacks before we go to your house?” She looked back to Shuichi with her wide, child-like eyes.  
Shuichi was about to agree, feeling a jab of discomfort in his own stomach. He didn’t have breakfast this morning, stupid decision, he knew, and his lunch period at school would have been an hour ago if not for the disappearance. Food was a very appealing thought at the moment, especially after running around the city for the entire afternoon. He would have agreed if not for her…  
“Snacks? At this time? Are you kidding me?” Maki questioned. “Humans are made to survive weeks without food and you’re complaining after half a day? Do you really expect to survive being that weak?” Maki snarled at the short girl, who flinched back at the uncalled-for hostility.  
“Maki, she has a point!” Shuichi said, putting his arm between the girls. This was the second fight he had to break up in one day. If this was how his life was going to be from now on, maybe he’d be better off alone. “I mean, if we have access to food, why not get it? We don’t really have anything to lose at this point. We’ll still be at my house before sunset.”  
Maki looked between him and Himiko as if she was assessing if it was worth beating them both up. Her eyes told them she wasn’t giving up easily this time. “I still refuse to stop somewhere to get snacks. Shuichi, how much food do you have at your house?”  
“A good amount? Definitely enough for three people.”  
“How long will it last?”  
“Uh… maybe a few days?” Shuichi estimated. His aunt and uncle liked to save money, buying enough food to live on comfortably, but not too much that it would be wasted if no one wanted it.  
“Fine. Then here’s my idea: I’ll run to a grocery store and grab some essential food, not snacks. You two go to Shuichi’s house. I’ll meet you there later. It won’t take me long.”  
“Wait… wouldn’t it make more sense for me to go to the store? I know the way back pretty well, so I could make it on my own. And also, you should be there to protect Himiko in case something happens.” Maki was scowling at him. In reality, Shuichi didn’t trust her with their food. She would probably either poison it or just take it all for herself and run away. He couldn’t deny that she was useful to be with during a time like this. She seemed to have experience with wandering the streets and had good instincts. If not for her, they might not have made it out of the police station alive. So he had to keep her with them, no matter what.  
Not even Maki could argue with the points Shuichi made. He was right, even if she wouldn’t admit it to his face. She only wanted some freedom for a few minutes, but it appeared she wouldn’t be getting it today. Those two got on her nerves a lot, but it seemed like she was stuck with them if she wanted the best chances of being successful in this… whatever this was.  
“I don’t need protecting! I’ve got my magic to fight with!” Himiko insisted.  
“I thought you were out of MP?” Shuichi asked, whatever that meant.  
“Ah! You’re right!” Himiko waved her hands around as if casting spells, but nothing happened.  
“What do you say, Maki?” Shuichi asked nervously.  
“Whatever.” Maki threw her hands up in defeat.  
“Thank you,” Shuichi let a small smile creep onto his face. He appreciated that she was working with him for once. “Do you have a cellphone?”  
“Yeah…” Maki said slowly as she reached for something on her leg, hidden underneath her black skirt. She pulled out a crimson-colored phone. Shuichi reached into his pants pocket and pulled his navy blue phone. He held out his hand to Maki, who stared at it apprehensively.  
“Give me your phone. I’ll add my number,” Shuichi said. Maki looked at his palm as if it would attack her. Eventually, she cautiously set her phone in it. Shuichi quickly typed the combination of numbers that were his on her contacts app, added his name, then handed it back to her. Maki immediately flipped her phone around like she was studying it for any traps Shuichi might have put on it. Shuichi just watched her in confusion.  
“I don’t have a phone. I use magic to talk to people through their minds,” Himiko explained, pointing to Shuichi’s and Maki’s foreheads and squeezing her eyes shut. “Okay, now I’ve got your brainwaves memorized.”  
“Yeah, thanks, Himiko,” Shuichi sighed. “Oh, one more thing,” he added, digging into his pocket again. He pulled out a small gold key. “This is for the front door.” He handed the key to Maki, who grasped her fist around it tightly. “Also, the address is 5373 Pine Drive.”  
“Okay, then we’ll see you later,” Maki said. “If you don’t text me by 8:00 tonight, I’ll assume you were killed. And if that happens, I’m free to leave and not have to take care of this kid.” Maki gestured to Himiko, who seemed insulted. With that, Maki continued her march to Shuichi’s house, with Himiko running to catch up. He wondered if they would really be okay together. Maki was probably a bigger threat to Himiko than any outside force.  
Shuichi looked around again. The nearest grocery store was only about three streets north. So, he walked in that direction, listening to the sound of his footsteps echoing between giant glass and steel walls on either side of him. Every few seconds, he would turn around to make sure no one was following him. His nerves were getting the better of him, turning random shadows in the corners of streets into ghosts or murderers or those robot things.   
At one particularly dark alleyway, he could swear something ran deeper into the darkness when he passed. He stopped and stared into the murky black that was the alleyway, looking for signs of life. If it was a person, he wanted to talk to them. But it was probably an animal. For only a fraction of a second, he thought he could see eyes staring back at him from the darkness. Shuichi abandoned any hope of talking to another person he had and sprinted to the grocery store.


	4. Shopping

Three large bags of chips, a pack of cookies, three boxes of crackers, two boxes of popcorn, five bars of chocolate, a gallon of ice cream, five boxes of moon pies, two dozen cans of soda, and… a houseplant? Kaede picked up the brown jar holding a small, leafy plant before carefully setting it back down in the shopping cart. She raised an eyebrow at its contents, none of which were on her short list. Canned foods, water bottles, rice, and granola bars were nowhere to be seen.  
“Kaito!” Kaede called out, her soft voice echoing in the high rafters of the grocery store. Shuffling steps and rustling as a bag dropped to the floor came from the next aisle over. Kaede rolled her eyes before a man poked his head around the shelf separating them.  
“What’s up?” He asked as he walked fully into view, holding another bag of chips, a large package of ramen, and a box of cereal. He dumped them from his arms into the cart without another word.  
Kaede sighed with a look into the cart and its unhealthy combination of food. “You were the one who told me we needed this-” She turned the list, written on a slip of paper, towards Kaito “-kind of Apocalypse Food’.” She referenced the bold sharpied title on the list.  
Kaito flashed her a wide grin. “Of course, I know all about that kind of stuff!” She didn’t need to be reminded of his accounts of astronaut training. Or his wild tales of survival on the ocean with the pirate boss, or in the jungle, fighting giant snakes, or even the story of the underground empire. Kaede had heard her friend repeat them to practically everyone he met, which was not any small amount.  
“I was just thinking, y’know, all this food is gonna go to waste either way. So why not eat it ourselves?” Kaito shrugged, still smiling.  
Kaede shrugged herself. He had a point, she guessed. It wasn’t like the situation was life-or-death, either. They could still take a few moments to relax and live like normal teengers.  
A normal teenager was what Kaede Akamatsu had always expected to be. She got average grades in school, had a decently large group of friends, and spent lots of time on her personal hobbies, like playing the piano. In fact, that hobby which was the most routine for her was what she had been doing when her life became anything but routine. How ironic.  
It was during study hall. Late morning at Shining Star International High School on a Monday. After a stressful first few periods, Kaede just wanted some time to unwind before the afternoon’s rigorous classes began. She headed to what was nicknamed “Kaede’s Lab” by those who knew her well: the practice rooms. The first one on the left was her favorite. Its soundproofing was the highest quality and remained empty for the most part. Even when there was another student inside, they would scamper out mumbling apologies when they saw Kaede. She had always wondered why her musically-drawn classmates seemed so intimidated by her. Maybe it was her enthusiasm? Or that she didn’t fit the stereotype of a “piano freak”? That was what some of her friends called her. She was used to it now, though.  
Anyways, Kaede had settled into a nearly hour-long session of piano playing. Each strike of a key would soothe her and draw out the stress and anxiety which plagued her mind during her school days. The music was more amazing and magical than anything else she had ever experienced. Depending on which song she played, she could find herself floating above the clouds, nearly touching the sun, or suspended deep below the ocean, with the moon shining through its murky depths. The key was letting your mind go and your fingers wander.  
Hearing her phone’s alarm go off, signaling the end of her free time, was like the harsh hand of reality tearing her out of the wonderful world the piano created. With regret slowing her movements, Kaede put her phone back in her white backpack and strode out of the music wing to join the rest of the crowds as they dispersed to different classrooms. Except today, the crowds were gone. Once, the sea would have swept Kaede away, but today, the waters were calm.  
She found herself frozen in time in that hallway. Maybe time had frozen inside that school. Broken free from its spell, Kaede darted from classroom to classroom. Maybe she had missed an announcement that all classes had let out early. Or an assembly was happening without her knowledge. But if that was the case, why hadn’t any of her friends come to get her? She knew she told them where she was going. They had laughed about their beloved “piano freak” as she left. Clearly, it wasn’t either of those solutions, seeing as the gym and teachers’ offices were just as lifeless as the hallways.  
So, if it wasn’t that… Maybe something horrible had happ- No, don’t think like that, Kaede! The girl shook her head. That wasn’t possible. The soundproofing panels were good, but not that good. If something had happened, she would have undoubtedly heard it. That left only one possibility: This was all a dream. The girl nodded her head. A dream, one that she would wake up from very soon upon realizing its truth.  
...But nothing happened. When Kaede blinked, she was still staring at an empty school. It was still silent. And no one was going to be there. Kaede felt her heart drop. What does someone do in a situation like this? It was like something straight out of a TV show.  
Kaede’s answer came in the form of a chiming tone in her backpack. She grabbed her cellphone, alive with the image of an incoming call. Kaito Momota. Kaede picked up without hesitation.  
“Oh my god!” Came the scream from the speakers. Kaede flinched and moved the phone away from her ear as victorious shouting continued on the other end. It pierced through the silence like a bullet.  
“Kaito?” Kaede asked in a quieter tone than she intended. After the man in question didn’t respond, Kaede repeated his name in a louder tone. The shouting on the other end stopped, and normal, if rapid, talking took its place.  
“Oh my god, Kaede! You have no idea how happy I am right now!” His voice cracked between sentences. “I tried calling everyone, and…” He trailed off into silence before resuming in a more serious tone. “I don’t know what in the world is going on right now. I was just at lunch, and then… I don’t know, man. Everyone disappeared.”  
Kaede’s fingers went numb, nearly dropping her phone from their grasp. She felt a lump form in her throat as dread filled her body. “Disappeared?” Was the only word her lips were able to form before falling silent again.  
“Yeah…” Kaito sounded almost regretful saying it. “Like, I mean they literally disappeared. One second they were there, the next they weren’t. Like they just turned invisible.” His laugh was dry, humorless.  
“So…” Kaede started slowly. “What do we do?” She glanced over her shoulder. She wasn’t sure if she would be more relieved or scared if she saw someone standing there now.  
Kaito hummed through the speakers. “Meet me at Rocketpunch as soon as you can.” He hesitated. “We should hang up now. Gotta save our batteries. If you need to change the plan, or if you see anyone else, call me. See you soon, Kaede.” After another moment of hesitation, the call hung up with a quiet beep.  
For the next half hour, Kaede walked through ominously still streets to the downtown section of Hope City. Not that the rural streets leading to Shining Star International were ever busy, but to see them this quiet was strange, at the very least. When she finally reached Rocketpunch Market, on the edge of Hope City, and inside found Kaito Momota waiting for her, she didn’t think she’d ever been happier.  
That led them to their current situation. After talking over what each of them had experienced, they decided that the best plan of action would be to gather all the materials they needed to survive for a week or two, and stay together in one of their houses, which turned out to be Kaede’s after arguing over who had the better home. Kaito proclaimed himself a survival expert, something Kaede doubted, but was willing to go along with just to lie to herself that everything was going to be okay and return to normal…  
A return to normal seemed the furthest thing from reality as they stood in front of rows of empty cash registers with a shopping cart full of food and drinks. Maybe if they stood long enough, someone would appear to check them out. Looking down into the cart, Kaede didn’t think she had even half of the money needed to pay for their haul.  
Kaito pushed the cart through the aisle without stopping. Kaede trailed behind him, fishing through her bag for her pink wallet. From that, she withdrew a quarter of what they most likely owed and set it next to the unused cash register. She stashed her wallet away before jogging after Kaito.  
“What was that for?” Kaito asked her, turning over his shoulder to give her a questioning look.  
“Well, I was thinking, in case - no, when - somebody comes back to work here, they’ll appreciate seeing at least a fraction of what they needed from us.” Kaede chuckled and shrugged.  
Kaito frowned at her. “Whatever you s-” Before he could finish, he was cut off by his shopping cart being abruptly overturned, its contents flying out in a scattered heap on the ground. Kaito yelped and jumped back into Kaede, bringing them both to the ground. Kaede screamed with the weight that landed on top of her. When she was able to look up, she saw a figure in black weakly rising from the remains of their shopping trip. She grimaced at some of the packages, which had split open from the impact. But the now-standing figure was more concerning than any food.  
The figure, a boy, wore a baseball cap which covered much of his face. From what she could see, though, he was a pale, thin boy, with a strange blue color for his hair, and an even stranger yellow color for his eyes. She felt hope spark in her chest before it quickly faded to suspicion. Who was this boy and why did he come charging into them like that?  
Before either Kaede or Kaito had a chance to, the stranger spoke first. “I-I’m so sorry!” He cried out as he rounded the shopping cart and dropped to his knees in the mess. He quickly grabbed a few items, turned the shopping cart right side up, and tossed them back in. Then, he froze. It seemed he too realized that seeing other people was now a one in a million chance. One that could either lead to the ultimate hope or death, depending on what you believed.  
The three stared at each other in complete silence. Kaito hadn’t moved from his uncomfortable position on top of Kaede, pinned to the hard ground, since he was first knocked down. The stranger also hadn’t moved. He still had one hand on the shopping cart, the other frozen in midair from where he had dropped the groceries.  
Kaede, finding her courage quicker than the other boys, finally raised her voice. “Um… Well, this is weird, isn’t it?” She sheepishly grinned as she pushed Kaito off of her and stood, brushing off her pink skirt. “Do you have any idea what’s going on right now? About the whole disappearing thing?” Kaede knew the answer before the stranger answered.  
“No, I don’t… Sorry…” He stammered, quickly averting his eyes from Kaede and staring at a spot of dirt on the ground. Kaede smiled at him, even if he couldn’t see her. He was shy. It was endearing, in a way. That shyness made her believe that seeing another person was hope rather than death.  
“I’m Kaede Akamatsu,” She said with her hand outstretched to the boy. He looked at her carefully before giving her his own hand. It was damp with sweat, and he barely gripped at all as she shook his hand.  
“I’m Shuichi Saihara…” He said quietly. He flinched as Kaito rose behind Kaede.  
“And I’m Kaito Momota!” Kaito shook Shuichi’s hand the same way Kaede had, but Shuichi seemed more shaken up by him than he had her. Kaito flashed him a toothy grin as he let go.  
“Nice to meet you two…” Shuichi glanced between them. Hints of suspicion still remained in his eyes, despite the warm greeting. After another awkward moment of silence, he said “So I suppose neither of you know anything about this, either?” The tiniest bit of hope remained in his voice.  
“Nope,” Kaede and Kaito answered in unison. Shuichi nodded sadly.  
“I figured…” He sighed.  
Kaede and Kaito shared an understanding glance. They smiled as they turned back to Shuichi, whose face turned frightened. Two optimistic people was an overwhelming thing, apparently, to nervous teenagers. “Well, that doesn’t really matter. I’m sure if we work together, we can figure it out. Right?” Kaede said in the most cheerful tone she could muster.  
“Yeah, you could be our partner. We’ve got plenty of food to go around…” Kaito gestured towards the items on the ground. “And it’s better to have three people than two. We could explore the city and figure out what’s going on.”  
Shuichi studied both of them before dropping his gaze again. “Sorry… I promised my… friend… that I’d be back before night. I don’t think she’d appreciate me bringing more strangers home.” He began picking up the fallen items again and placing them in the cart.  
“There’s more?” Kaede gasped.  
Shuichi looked up from his task. “Yeah, I met two girls today. None of us know what’s happening though…” Shuichi promptly shut his mouth. Had he given away too much information? How did he know he could even trust these two?  
“So that makes five of us… Maybe more, who knows?” Kaito rubbed the back of his neck before joining Shuichi at the same time as Kaede. Together, the three were able to clean up all of the spilled items and have them back in the cart in less than two minutes. Kaito only frowned at the small spiderweb cracks in the pot of his houseplant. When it was all done, Kaede beamed.  
“Well, Shuichi, I think it was really a great thing that we met. We should meet up again soon. I’m sure one of us will have figured something out by then. Oh, and-” Kaede pulled out her mauve-colored phone and handed it to Shuichi. “So we can keep in contact,” she said as Shuichi quickly entered his contact information. He did the same to Kaito’s galaxy-patterned phone. He soon got two texts from two new numbers, identifying their owners.  
Shuichi felt comforted by the two, even if they were complete strangers. Kaede Akamatsu… he was sure he’d heard that name somewhere before. Regardless, she was a dazzling sight, with her shining golden hair and deep violet eyes. He couldn’t help but feel an encouraging aura radiating from her barely shorter frame. And Kaito Momota… he was surprised he’d never heard that name, with how much the taller man stood out. His purple hair was spiked up in a way Shuichi was sure drew attention, and his lilac-colored eyes were certainly not an average color. Shuichi forced himself to ignore their quirks, not that he didn’t have enough of them himself. Even though they were strangers, it seemed strangers were becoming his best allies recently.  
But he still had one question. “How can you guys trust me so easily?” He asked, trailing behind the duo as they exited the store’s automatic doors. They both looked over their shoulders at him.  
Kaito waited a second before answering. “I just wanted to, I guess,” he said with a shrug. “You seem like a good guy.” He grinned.  
“And, no offense, you didn’t seem like you could do much to us,” Kaede giggled under her breath.  
“Ah… thank you?” Shuichi looked torn between accepting that as a compliment or insult. They were now outside. The air had dropped another ten or so degrees since they entered, the wind biting through all of their clothes. Kaede suddenly wished she had chosen to wear leggings under her skirt that day, and Kaito drew his purple jacket, resting on his broad shoulders, closed. The sun was visibly setting now, its bottom edge grazing the top of the skyscrapers of Hope City.  
“Good luck getting home, Shuichi!” Kaede said as she picked up half of the bags from the cart. Kaito grabbed his share before kicking the cart back in the general direction of the doors.   
Shuichi suddenly exclaimed that he nearly forgot what he had come there for: food. He began to run back in the store before Kaede stopped him. She insisted he take some of theirs, and Kaito agreed, less reluctantly than Kaede had thought he would. Shuichi rejected their offer multiple times before Kaede forced the bags into his arms. She was glad to let the boy take some of the weight off of her hands.  
“And call us if you need anything, partner,” Kaito winked as the two began stepping away.  
Suddenly, Shuichi remembered an important detail. “Wait, guys!” The duo stopped. “Watch out for… strange things… wandering the streets… ” Shuichi couldn’t say monsters out loud. They would think he was insane.  
“Of course, you too!” Kaede cheerfully called out as they split ways. Shuichi, carrying his parting gifts from them, and Kaede and Kaito happily chatting about their new friend. No one noticed the pair of eyes following their movements into the rapidly growing shadows of night.


	5. A Long Walk

Maki ignored the childlike singing from beside her. Even worse than the girl’s high-pitched voice, that reminded her too much of all the children she grew up with, were the lyrics. They were overly cheerful and spoke of a magical girl and her friends. It sounded like it came from a children’s cartoon or anime series, and had no place on the grim city streets. Thankfully, it only took one sharp look for the smaller girl to be silenced.  
Without the singing, there was only that suffocating silence that hung over the city, like heavy clouds rolling in for a storm. Maki was used to silence. It was a part of the job which she was so skilled at. Remaining completely silent while walking down already quiet streets at night time was something of a specialty for her. Which meant this shouldn’t have felt much different from usual. And yet, it was. This silence was unnatural. It was the foreboding silence prey would be enveloped in before the predator struck. Maki didn’t like being on the receiving end of that. It made her heart beat a little faster, and her limbs felt a little more alive than usual, like she would have to start running for her life at any second.  
“Nyeh, Maki…” The taller girl tensed at the sound which pierced the silence like a knife. She was drawn back to reality for a moment. “How do you think Shuichi’s doing?” She could detect hesitation in Himiko’s voice. Like she was worried… How stupid! Being worried about someone you barely knew!  
“Detective boy will be fine,” Maki replied without much assurance. She didn’t turn, just continued walking. They had been on their journey for fifteen minutes, but it already felt like an hour with such annoying company. According to Shuichi, only about half an hour remained until she would reach his house.  
“Detective? Shuichi’s a detective?” Himiko gasped. “Nyeh…That’s pretty cool…” If Maki had turned, she would have seen a hint of wonder spark in Himiko’s dull eyes.  
“Cool?” Maki hissed. “Why is that? He might be a detective, but he doesn’t know anything. He’s just as clueless as everyone else. What use is a detective who can’t solve a mystery?” Maki continued with spite. Detectives. All talk and no game. Himiko stopped replying.  
Five minutes more, and they had reached the police station again. It stood the same way it had when they left. Maki didn’t know what she had expected to see, but this wasn’t it. Maybe a suppressed, childlike side of her mind thought the creature would have left a gaping hole or raging fires in its wake. But there was no sign any such thing had ever been there. Maki questioned if it even had, or if it was just a hallucination brought on by the uncertainty of their situation after all.  
Maki embraced the silence and deepening shadows of twilight. She became one with them as she crept forward, making no more sound than the air itself. Her feet strategically avoided shards of glass and small pebbles as she glided past the front of the police station smoothly. If anyone had been watching, they would have only seen a shadow swiftly pass the building before disappearing into the darkness between buildings on the other side of the road.  
Himiko, on the other hand, was like a bright ball of light in the shadows. She stuck out like a red blotch on an otherwise monochrome landscape. If anyone had been watching, it would be no secret now that the shadow was, in fact, a human, being followed by someone much less skilled in the art of stealth. Maki groaned internally as Himiko’s oversized boot hit a rock, skidding it across the pavement with an obvious noise.  
All it took was the faintest hint of movement on the other side of the street for Maki to roughly grab Himiko in her strong arms and drag her away. Maki didn’t let her legs give up, even with the added ninety-or-so pounds of Himiko, and the sear of lactic acid. She sprinted like her life depended on it, which it might have, for all she knew. That was another specialty of hers. Running. If she had joined the track team at her high school, she would have broken their records, she was sure of it. It’s not like any of the average girls she shared classes with would have even compared. They ran for what? Fun? Staying healthy? Maki ran for her survival. That’s what gave her the edge she needed over everyone else.  
Maki finally slowed once she was over a mile away. It had only been about five minutes. She caught her breath and released the other girl, who let out a giant puff of air as she limply fell to her knees. Her small fingers prodded her own ribcage, and winced once they touched a certain spot. Maki frowned. Perhaps she had held on a bit too tightly. But if she hadn’t… there was no telling what would have happened to her. Not that she cared what happened to her immature sidekick.  
“What was that for… Maki?” Himiko panted. She pushed herself up using her knees. “Did you see another monster?” Her already large eyes widened.  
“No,” Maki said. “Gut instinct.” She spun on her heels and began walking in the direction they needed to again. Maki knew exactly where their destination was without even typing the address in on her phone’s map. She probably knew the streets of Hope City more than anyone. After all, on her… missions… she couldn’t carry a map or GPS, much less a phone. It was pure memorization and muscle memory.  
Pine Drive, reached in another twenty minutes, was a small road overshadowed by the forest which it took its name from. The aged, gnarled pine trees formed a barrier against the backyards of the average brick and wood houses on one side. The other side of the road was barren and looked over the city, which was now a mere silhouette in the distant gray sky. The entire road smelled faintly of sap and the earthy forest scent.  
Maki’s eyes eventually found the number which matched the one repeating in her mind. 5373 Pine Drive. Maki stepped onto the front porch, which cracked audibly under her and Himiko’s boots. Like no one had walked on it in weeks. She removed the small key from a hidden pocket on her skirt and twisted it in the knob until the door swung open with a creak.  
The inside of the house was warm. Cozy, some would call it. It smelled like coffee, dust, and ancient books. Fitting for a detective. It was nearly silent, except for a faint buzzing from somewhere in another room. The sound was a welcome addition nonetheless. A chill snuck in through the open door before Maki slammed it shut, shutting out whatever lurked outside.  
They were standing in a small living room. A worn, stained couch sat past a coffee table, covered in various newspapers and empty mugs. On the other side of the coffee table, in front of a large bay window with its burnt orange curtains drawn, was an old-fashioned television. Three doorways led off of the living room to other rooms, which Maki intended to inspect before settling in. She ignored the wooden shoe rack next to the door. There was no need for such formalities now. Not that she would have cared in a stranger’s home, anyways.  
“Nyeh...Maki! It’s dark in here!” Himiko whined. Maki heard a thud as Himiko tripped over her own feet, nearly falling face-first onto the spongy carpet. “Is...is there a lightswitch?” She fumbled along the wall.  
Maki’s eyes, trained for darkness like this, spotted a lamp sitting on an end table next to the couch. She flicked its switch, bringing the lamp to life, and bathing the room in an orange glow. She could see Himiko cowering with one hand pressed against the slightly peeling wallpaper. A thank you was muttered before the childish girl plopped herself down on the couch. Her small body sunk into the cushions.  
Maki drifted from room to room like a ghost. On the left, the kitchen was even smaller than the living room, with the most basic essentials and a tiny pantry off to the side. A simple circular table seemed shoved in as an afterthought, with three chairs surrounding it. Wide windows spanned across the entire back wall, and gave a pleasant view of the forest beyond the house’s crumbling wooden fence.  
Opposite the kitchen, on the right side of the living room, was a wide opening which contained the stairs and a small bathroom. A closet nearby also held old jackets and shoes. Maki wrinkled her nose at the smell of mothballs. The back door, equipped with a chain lock, led to the backyard.  
The room which interested Maki the most, however, was behind a tightly shut door next to the couch. She placed her hand on the black doorknob. Locked, she frowned. She looked over her shoulder at Himiko. The other girl wouldn’t give her any thought. Her attention was completely absorbed by the show on the TV, which she had apparently found the remote to. Flashing images of a game show were displayed on the flickering screen.  
With one swift, practiced move, Maki pulled the silver hair clip, which she always wore, out of her brown locks, and flipped it to its true form, a lockpick, and twisted it in the keyhole until a satisfying click was heard. She pushed open the door as the hair clip returned to its position on the side of her head.  
This room was the darkest of them all. Only a beam of warmth filtered through the crack of an opening Maki had left in the doorway. She didn’t need light, though, to see what was inside the office-like room. Tall bookshelves lined as much of the walls as they could, and all of them were packed to the brim with thick books. Maki was able to pick out a few titles she faintly recalled from school or the library. One section was for mystery novels, another for biographies of famous criminals, one more for thesauruses and encyclopedias… Maki ran her slender fingers along their spines, feeling the coarse dips and rises under their tips. When she pulled away, a fine layer of dust had been removed, and now resided on her pale skin. She blew it away.  
The only section not crowded with shelves was a medium-sized desk underneath a small, covered window. On top of it was placed a lamp, a bulky desktop computer, and a framed photo. Maki picked up the photo with a careful grasp. It was an intricately designed golden frame, with curving designs of what looked like feathers. The photo itself was of two people: a man and a young boy in front of some building in the city. The boy’s hair was dark, especially when compared to his golden eyes. Definitely Shuichi. The man looked similar. His hair was a little more black than blue, and his eyes more hazel than gold, but there was no doubt that he was the uncle Shuichi spoke of. The uncle who was a detective… Detective Saihara… Maki’s grip tightened as she remembered the name, sending a tiny crack through one corner of the photograph. She hastily tossed it back onto the desk. Detective Saihara, the man who had caused her so much trouble over the years, with his never ending determination and immense intelligence. He had the rare ability to be one step ahead of everyone, like every action was just a move on a chessboard, and he was a grandmaster.  
The anger bubbling beneath Maki’s skin dispersed with a knock on the front door. She quickly slipped out of the room and shut the door behind her. Hopefully Shuichi wouldn’t try to enter or, at least, would forget it was locked. When she walked past the couch, Himiko looked at her with worry. “Is that Shuichi?” She asked.  
“Hopefully,” Maki replied curtly. Hopefully for them… Maki slipped her hand under her skirt’s waistband, where the reassuring chill of metal met her fingertips. Her other hand turned the doorknob, then swung the door open to greet their visitor. The nervous-looking boy on the other side let out a strangled noise and jumped at the sudden movement. Maki quickly withdrew her hand, empty.   
Shuichi was carrying three bags on each arm, laden with boxes and cans of various sizes. He swayed as he was thrown off balance from his previous shock, trying to keep the heavy bags from pulling him down entirely. Maki noticed the layer of sweat which had gathered on his forehead, and the way his breaths were a little too uneven for him to have had an easy walk back.  
“I...I’m sorry…” Shuichi said between breaths as a seemingly displeased Maki stared him down from his own doorway. “It’s almost eight… I tried making it back as soon as possible, but, uh…” Shuichi looked down at his hands abashedly. “The groceries were kind of heavy…”  
Without another word, Maki grabbed the bags from Shuichi’s arms and carried them into the house with ease. Shuichi’s shoulders slumped from disappointment and shame as he followed the girl inside, shutting and dead-bolting the door behind him. Maki strode into the kitchen and set the groceries on the small table. That was what Shuichi called heavy? Maki stopped a laugh in her throat.  
Together, the two unpacked Shuichi’s haul. Maki narrowed her eyes at a package of cookies and a bag of chips. Shuichi danced around the question when she asked why he had taken them. Himiko soon poked her head into the kitchen, which meant the cookies were abruptly opened and two were in her mouth before Maki could say another thing. Other than that, Maki was at least a little happy to see bottled water, canned foods, and other items that would last a good amount of time. Not that she wanted to be stuck here for that long.  
“Wow, it’s already nine…” Shuichi said after everything had been put away in their rightful places. Maki looked up to the simple black and white clock over the sink. Darkness had completely fallen outside, and she didn’t like that there were no blinds or curtains on the kitchen windows. She couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched from somewhere out there.   
“I’m tired…” Himiko yawned when the two returned to the living room. Her show had clearly ended, as a soap drama was now playing out on screen. Shuichi nodded, the familiar feeling of fatigue creeping through his body as well.   
“Yeah, it’s been a long day,” Shuichi said. “I’ll sleep in my own room. It’s the smallest anyways. That leaves my uncle’s bedroom and the guest bedroom. I guess it doesn’t matter who sleeps where.” He looked between the two girls.  
“I’ll take your uncle’s room,” Maki said a bit too quickly. Shuichi raised an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything else.  
“The guest bedroom is the first on the right. The bathroom is right after it,” Shuichi told Himiko. She nodded before slowly pushing herself out of the couch and trudging up the stairs. “My uncle’s room is the only door on the left,” he told Maki.  
Before she could follow Himiko up the stairs, Shuichi called out for her to wait. “Um…” He started uncertainly. “If we were to find other people, what would we do?” His eyes fell on the girl, and noticed her inquisitive look.  
Maki paused before answering. “We’d have to question them, first of all. But no matter what, we couldn’t trust them. I don’t even trust you two. It’s dangerous to get too close to those you don’t know. You never know what people are capable of.” With that, Maki disappeared up the stairs.  
After turning off the television and the lamp, Shuichi climbed the dark stairs. Maki’s words resonated within him ominously. None of them could shake the feeling that the other two were hiding information. Either about themselves or how much they knew. How long would it be before they were betrayed? Shuichi could only wonder as he fell asleep in mere seconds.


	6. Newcomers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I learned that my formatting wasn't great in the past chapters. Sorry about that. This is the first story I've posted here, and I'm still kind of new to Ao3, so I wasn't sure how that stuff worked. But I'm pretty sure I've got it figured out now (if not, feel free to call me out on it). As always, thank you for reading!!!

Hope City was completely empty. Kaede was sure of that now. She and Kaito had spent the entire morning walking through the silent streets until their legs were burning and their hearts were hopeless. Hopeless. That was a good way to describe it, Kaede thought. With no idea what had happened and no idea what to do next, it was hard to feel anything but hopeless. How ironic, considering the location of their despair was in a city with a name the opposite of it.

Regardless of that, Kaede forced herself to keep her spirits up. Both for her sake and Kaito’s. Speaking of her best friend, he was beginning to lag behind. The soft footsteps of his galaxy-themed slippers had slowed, now a faint dragging noise on the concrete sidewalk. Kaede stopped her march and turned around.

“Come on, Kaito. I thought you were supposed to be an astronaut-in-training,” she laughed lightly.

Kaito looked at her and smiled. “Sorry. Didn’t sleep well, I guess.” He hastened his steps to catch up with her, then yawned as she continued walking.

“Really? I thought the guest bedroom was comfortable,” Kaede said, watching the street ahead of them. A rat scurried across the road.

“It is… it’s just…” Kaito sighed as he scratched the back of his neck. “It’s weird, you know? Something about all of this,” he gestured to the empty street around them, “isn’t right. I don’t feel right, at least.” His voice echoed between the steel and glass buildings on either side.

“I know…” Kaede said quietly. She didn’t want to admit it to herself, but the city felt like something out of a horror movie. She didn’t think she would even feel surprised if a monster suddenly came running out from around a corner. She shivered and made sure to watch her left, where darkness shrouded the alleyways between buildings

“But don’t worry about that!” Kaede found her bright smile again. “We’re gonna figure out what happened eventually. We have to! Anyways, we’ve got each other. Nothing can beat us when we’re together, right?” She lightly punched Kaito’s arm.

The taller boy grinned back. “Right!”

Kaede was glad she could lighten the mood for a bit.

It was only a few minutes before the pair entered the “office district”. That was what most people called it. It was the infamously dull corner on the edge of Hope City which contained a majority of the office buildings in the city. It was mostly dead silent, even when things were… normal. It had somehow become even more dull with the sudden change of events. Kaede practically felt her eyes grow bored with staring at the identical beige, gray, and black buildings they passed.

“What do you think we’ll find?” Kaito asked suddenly.

“What do you mean?” Kaede said.

“Like… do you think we’re actually gonna find anything out here?”

“I’m sure we will… eventually.”

“I was thinking, maybe we should meet up with-” Kaito abruptly fell into silence. “Kaede, look!” He whispered, pointing up at one of the buildings. Kaede’s gaze followed.

In one window on the second-to-top floor of an office building across the street, a light was on. The yellow ring was more ominous than comforting, though. Kaede shivered at the sight of it. No figures moved in the room from what they could see, but they guessed someone was inside, either now or had been before. In all of the buildings they had explored, absolutely no lights were left on. So why now? Why this one?

“Let’s go,” Kaede said, jogging across the street to the glass doors of the building.

“Wait, wait, Kaede!” Kaito rushed after her, grabbing one of her arms while the other rested on the door handles. “We don’t even know who’s up there! What if it’s a violent person, or a ghost, or… something?” Kaito frowned. “Just because Shuichi was friendly doesn’t mean anyone else we meet is going to be.”

Kaede stared into her friend’s purple eyes. He was confident and determined, like her, but definitely more cautious. He wanted to figure out what was going on just as much as her, but knew they couldn’t rush into danger head-first. Kaede knew that as well, but she was blinded by her own optimism sometimes. To her, in a situation like this, there was no time to wait around and plan things out. It was time to act.

“It’ll be fine, Kaito,” Kaede assured him. “If someone attacks, both of us together can handle them.” His expression changed only slightly.

She pulled open the doors and stepped into the building. It was as basic as the exterior, with the only bit of decoration being the fake potted plants on various surfaces. She looked down the hallways leading off of the entrance room, eventually finding the one which held the elevators and stairs. She opted to take the stairs after a moment of consideration. Her legs would hate her later, but the caution she retained agreed with her decision. She heard Kaito mount the stairs behind her. They took the steps two at a time.

Eight flights, and more aching muscles, later, they had reached the fourth floor, where the light had been. Kaede and Kaito placed their hands on the metal door which would let them out of the dark stairwell. They nodded to each other before pushing the metal bar together, opening the door with a horribly loud clank.

They entered the carpeted room wordlessly. Kaede crept past the rows of desks, separated by half-walls that were only slightly taller than Kaito. There were no signs of life, only blackened monitors and stacks of paper. As she moved forward, Kaede could see the warm glow coming from one cubicle against the left wall, near the end of the room. 

In a few minutes that dragged on slowly, Kaede could finally look into the cubicle holding the single lamp. There was no one there. Only the golden lamp on top of the desk, a black cord connecting it to an outlet. With a small gesture, Kaede told Kaito to stay where he was, crouched in a cubicle diagonal from the lamp. Kaede stood fully and walked across the room, to the cubicle against the windows

She flicked off the lamp, dousing the room in the dull gray which covered everything else. Outside, small raindrops had begun to fall. Kaede sighed. It would be a long and wet walk back home. She could see her own reflection, albeit faintly, in the reflective glass. She wore the same clothes she had the day before, not seeing a need to- Wait, was that movement behind her?

Kaede crashed against the desk when a sudden force hit her from behind, knocking over the lamp with a loud crash. She immediately tried to push herself up with her hands, only to find that they had been tied behind her back. How in the world did that happen so quickly?

“Kaede!” Came Kaito’s cry from a few feet away. Then, a loud grunt and thud. Kaede spun around and saw the scene before her. 

Kaito was on the ground, his jacket flung off of the shoulder it rested on, and some of his purple hair falling from its signature style. He stared up, wide-eyed, at another boy, whose foot rested on the center of his chest. The boy who stood over him was fairly tall, with green hair and darker green eyes. He wore a plain sweatshirt and jeans, nothing out of the ordinary for a teenager, which Kaede presumed he was. Except for his piercings: it seemed like one in each ear and another above his eyebrow. The other boy, who Kaede almost didn’t notice, was standing next to her. He was maybe half a foot shorter than her, and looked like a child, with his round purple eyes and wide grin. He was dressed more strangely than his partner, in a white suit and checkered scarf. She wondered how that kid had managed to take her down in the way he had.

No one spoke. For what seemed like an hour, they all stared at each other, measuring each other up and evaluating the next move. Kaede bent her neck at an uncomfortable angle to view the binds on her wrists. It looked like a normal rope to her.

“Sorry, you can’t break out of that!” The small boy laughed at her. “It’s made from my special super strong steel!”

“Really?” Kaede gasped. Her shoulders began to ache as much as her legs.

“Who the hell are you guys?” Kaito said in as tough a voice he could muster. He shoved the green-haired boy’s foot off of him, jumping to his feet. Kaito was a couple inches taller, and used it to his advantage, glaring down at the attacker. His hands tightened into fists at his sides. The green-haired boy let a smirk show on his lips. Kaito let a fist fly, but the other boy dodged it, ducking to the side with ease.

This apparently angered the small boy, since he took a few steps forward, his grin turning to a scowl. “Don’t you dare touch Rantaro!” He shouted. His rage seemed extreme, almost exaggerated.

“Relax, Kokichi. He can’t hurt me,” Rantaro continued smiling. In one move, Kaito was on the floor again. Rantaro had won. Kaede took the chance while they were both distracted to tug harder on her binds. Strong? Yes. Special super strong steel? Definitely not. She felt them loosen a bit as she pulled. 

“You guys are pretty stupid to walk right up to us,” Kokichi laughed again, his anger gone as quickly as it had appeared. “It saves us a lot of trouble, though, so thanks!”

“Trouble?” Kaito groaned from the floor. “What are you planning? What do you want from  _ us _ ?”

“Oh, nothing, I was just sent by my evil organization to kill you two for your crimes!” Kokichi’s expression darkened.

“Kill us?” Kaede exclaimed.

“Our crimes?” Kaito exclaimed.

“Yep!” Kokichi said.

Rantaro rolled his eyes with a sigh. “He’s lying. Just give me anything you’ve got on you, and we won’t have to hurt you.” He held out his hand to Kaito, who stared at it with a venomous look.

“Why should I? I don’t even know who you guys are!” Kaito yelled.

Rantaro pulled his hand back. It was his time to become serious. His eyes narrowed, and his smile turned downcast. “That’s none of your business. You just need to know that we have complete control right now, and it would be wise to listen. Unless…” He turned to Kaede. “You wouldn’t want me to hurt anyone, right?” His hand slipped into his jeans pocket and produced a small pocket knife.

Kaede watched as Kaito’s eyes widened. He pulled out the contents of his coat pockets with regret. She watched Rantaro’s knife go back into his pocket, only its outline showing through the denim. She let out the breath she was holding. Kaito handed over his cellphone and a few crumpled dollar bills. Next, Rantaro approached Kaede. She forced herself to stare up into his eyes. Don’t show weakness, she told herself. The earlier fear and shock she felt was replaced by burning anger, a want for revenge.

She cringed at the feel of Rantaro’s hands on her back as he opened her white backpack. She couldn’t see, but knew by the greatly lessening weight that he was taking everything she had in there. Her cellphone, keys, wallet, snacks, and drinks… All of it was going to be gone. After he was done and began to walk away, Kaede saw her chance.

Sprinting with her hands tied wasn’t easy, but she managed. She charged towards Rantaro, who had turned his back on the girl he guessed wasn’t the fighting type. She crashed into his stronger form with all of her weight, sending them both to the floor. The contents of her backpack flew out of Rantaro’s arms, scattering across the ground. She heard shouts behind her, but tried to focus on the boy she had to keep pinned.

She glanced up for only a few seconds, during which she saw Kaito on his feet, charging towards Kokichi. Kaito extended his arms to grab the much shorter boy, but for what he lacked in height, he made up for in speed. Kokichi easily ducked, ran underneath Kaito’s legs, and was next to Kaede in a split-second. Then, Kaede felt cool metal against her temple. She froze. It was a gun.

During her hesitation, she was flung off of Rantaro, who stood up with a flustered look. Kaito stood frozen on the other side of the duo. Kokichi still pointed the gun at her. After brushing himself off, Rantaro picked up the items he had dropped and tossed them into his own brown backpack. He slung the bag over one shoulder and gestured for Kokichi to come. Kokichi carefully followed, not lowering his gun by much.

Before he exited, Rantaro paused, with one hand on the door. “Good luck out there, guys. You never know what could be waiting just around the corner,” he said without turning. He walked into the stairwell, leaving only Kokichi with their victims.

Kokichi stuffed the gun into a holster on the side of his white pants and looked up with a playful smile. “See you later!” He said with a wink. He followed Rantaro into the stairway, and was gone, along with a chunk of hope that Kaede and Kaito had been holding onto.


End file.
